EBBETS FIELD

BROOKLYN, NY

Throughout sports
there are certain franchises that have a storied history that will
never be forgotten. Located in Brooklyn, the Dodgers and their
ballpark for over four decades Ebbets Field will never be forgotten
in sports history as it is remembered as one of the most nostalgic
stadiums ever built.
The history of baseball in Brooklyn dates back
to the 1850s. In 1884 the Brooklyn baseball club became part of the
newly founded American Association where they played in the original
Washington Park. Over their first 30 years, the Dodgers had a variety
of names including known as the Atlantics, Grays, Bridegrooms,
Grooms, Superbas and Trolley Dodgers. The team joined the National
League in 1890 and played at the first Washington Park and Eastern
Park until 1897. A new Washington Park was built for the team in
South Brooklyn and opened on April 30, 1898. This wooden ballpark
had a seating capacity of 16,000 to 18,000. Charles Ebbets bought
the Dodgers in the early 1900s and wanted to build a
new steel and concrete ballpark because Washington
Park faced the fate of many other ballparks of the
time, fire. Originally Ebbets thought of building
a new ballpark on the site of Washington Park but
this was to determined to be to costly. Ebbets began
searching for land to construct a ballpark, finding
land in the Flatbrush area of Brooklyn along Bedford
Avenue and Cedar Place. Although this area was in
the slums of Brooklyn, over 40 people owned parcels
of land. Ebbets
began purchasing land in 1905, 1,200 parcels in total, before having
enough land to construct a ballpark in 1912.

Construction on the ballpark began March 14, 1912
and Ebbets decided to name the ballpark after
himself. Completed in just over a year, the Brooklyn
Dodgers played their first game at the ballpark on April 9, 1913, a
loss to Philadelphia. Ebbets Field had a capacity of 23,000
consisting of a covered double decked grandstand extending from the
right field foul pole to homeplate and around to the third base
side. A lower level of seating continued down the third base side to
the left field foul pole. The right field wall consisted of a nine
foot wall. Once opening day arose a problem was
discovered, there was no press box. A press box was placed in two rows of seats in the upper deck.
One of the most iconic features of Ebbets Field was
its exterior, consisting of brick and arches. At the
homeplate entrance it's most impressive feature, an
80-foot rotunda, made of Italian marble that greeted
fans.

The first addition to Ebbets Field was in
1926 when bleachers were added in the outfield. In 1929, a press
box was finally constructed and hung under the upper deck. The
largest addition to Ebbets Field
occured in 1931 when the double
decked grandstand was extended down the third base line, around the
left field foul pole and into centerfield. The upper deck in left
field hung over the playing field. A scoreboard and a 40 ft.
concave, angled in the middle right field wall was built in 1931. After the 1931
expansions Ebbets Field changed little during the rest of its
history. Night baseball was first played on June 15,
1938 when a no-hitter was thrown against the Dodgers by Cincinnati
Reds pitcher Johnny Vander Meer. Fans of the Brooklyn Dodgers continued going to Ebbets Field
to watch their Dodgers play. Hilda Chester became a popular woman
who sat in the bleachers and made lots of noise with her cowbell.
The sounds from Gladys Gooding, baseball's first
full time organist could be heard throughout Ebbets
Field.
The right and left field walls became plastered with advertisements,
the most famous being the Schaefer beer ad that gave the official
scorer's ruling on hits and errors. Below this ad was an Abe Stark "Hit sign, win suit"
advertisement.

In the late 1940s and
early 1950s Ebbets Field became structurally unsound, the plumbing
was bad, had a small capacity and narrow aisles. It was also
constrained by its location and the community was in decline. As
fans moved out of Brooklyn they wanted to drive to the
ballpark. However, there was limited parking at Ebbets Field and it
was far away from major roads. In 1946 Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley
commissioned Captain Emil Praegar to design a new stadium. To be
constructed with private funds, O'Malley did not publicly unveil
this plan until 1952. If constructed it would have had a seating
capacity of 52,000 and been the first stadium with a dome. O'Malley
faced several problems having a new ballpark built including
acquiring land for construction. He was willing to be a tenant
in a state owned stadium but opposition from the most powerful
person in New York City, Robert Moses prevented this.

Disagreement between
Moses and the Dodgers led O’Malley to make threats that the New York Giants and Dodgers
may move to
California. The team moved seven home games in 1956 and 1957 to
Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, NJ as part of its negotiating
tactics against the city. In 1955, the demise of Ebbets Field began
when a real estate developer bought the ballpark. By then it became known that the
Giants and Dodgers were going to move to the west coast. On
September 24, 1957 the Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets
Field, a win against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The following season
they were in Los Angeles, playing at the
Los Angeles Coliseum while their
new ballpark, Dodger Stadium was
under construction. Demolition of Ebbets Field began on February 23,
1960. Seats from the stadium were sold for $5 and pieces of sod for
25 cents. The flagpole located in centerfield was donated to a
company in Flatlands, NY but its whereabouts are unknown today.
Ebbets Field's cornerstone and other artifacts are located at the
Baseball Hall of Fame. Apartments were constructed after the
demolition of Ebbets Field. A plaque commemorates the ballpark's
existence at the site.

EBBETS FIELD SITE

EBBETS FIELD VIDEO

Lost Ballparks:
Ebbets Field

Outside Ebbets Field
in 1913
Ebbets Field Entrance
Aerial view of Ebbets Field

EBBETS FIELD PICTURES

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